First Steps
by scifislasher
Summary: [Boukenger] Can be seen as a sequel to 'New Beginnings' or it can stand on its own. SoutaSakura


First Steps

He was doomed, Souta thought as he leant over Sakura's shoulder. The Deep Adventurer was working on a simulation, but he was working on it as well, or he was supposed to be anyway, his technical skills being necessary for this mission. He didn't know when exactly he'd fallen for his reserved team-mate, but he knew it had been a while, and he suspected that in reality it went back to when he'd first met her.

Chief had been welcoming when he'd decided to accept the crazy offer, become an adventurer, help save the world, but Sakura… had not been welcoming. She had made it perfectly clear that she didn't trust him at all and she had been completely impervious to his attempts at breaking the ice. It had been both refreshing and unexpected, that resistance. Until her, he'd never had any problems with charming women. Sakura had been different and he'd had no idea how to respond to her. In the end, he stopped trying to win her over and simply concentrated on doing his job. Admittedly, that decision was helped by the failure of a mission due to the lack of trust and co-operation between the two of them. Chief had never said anything, but he hadn't had to. It was a problem that needed to be resolved.

And it had. Sakura had come around in her own sweet time, but by then it had become more than obvious as to where her interest lay, although it was equally obvious that the object of her affection was completely oblivious. As it was, though, he had no interest in competing with the man who'd given him the chance to start his life over, make up for some of the things in his past, so he'd buried the attraction and most of the time he could convince himself that Sakura was only a team-mate and friend, nothing more. Other times he wasn't as successful.

Now was one of those times. As close as they were, he could smell the faint scent of cherry blossom in her hair and it was very distracting. While Sakura might not be conventionally pretty, she had her own special attractions, and if most men were oblivious to them, in favour of the more popular style of looks, all the better. It was their loss. Sakura was very serious, but when she smiled her whole face lit up and it took his breath away. Her hair was also very distracting. Not just because it smelled so good, but because it flowed down her back like a jet black waterfall, except for when she went into combat-pro mode, at which point she tied it back. But when it was loose, like it was now, his fingers itched to bury themselves in that long black hair and he had to force himself to concentrate on the numbers and diagrams on the computer screen instead.

"Souta-kun, you're not paying attention."

He blinked at the mild tone of censure in her voice. "Sorry, Sakura-san," he apologised. "I got distracted."

There was a quiet, derisive sound. "That wasn't what I meant." He frowned and Sakura turned in her chair to look at him. "Look at the screen, Souta."

He studied the screen carefully, running the numbers through his head again and his eyebrows shot up as the realisation dawned on him. The numbers were total gibberish. They had nothing whatsoever to do with the simulation they were working on.

"I thought you would have noticed sooner."

He snapped his head round to find Sakura looking at him with an amused expression and a number of other things started to fall into place. "What about the mission we're preparing for?"

She didn't even have the decency to look embarrassed. "There is no mission." _Of **course** there isn't._

He leant back against the wall. "Then what was this?"

Her mouth lifted into a satisfied smile. "A test."

"What kind of test?"

_She smirked_, he thought in shock. She actually _smirked_. There was no other word to describe the self-satisfied expression on her face. With no sign of hesitation, she leant forward and kissed him briefly at the corner of his mouth before moving away, a quick flash of uncertainty crossing her expression that was replaced by an impish grin. As he stared at her in bewilderment, feeling as if his jaw were on the floor, her smile grew. "Souta-kun, you're staring."

He tried to pull himself together, to get out something more coherent than 'guh', but he didn't get the chance as she turned and walked out the room. He would later swear though, that the extra swish in her stride was deliberate. At the time however, all he could manage was a strangled whimper before he finally managed to get himself together.

_Huh_, he thought, as he mentally replayed what had just happened. Maybe she wasn't as hung up on the Chief as he'd thought. He headed quickly out the doors himself, intent on finding her and sorting out what would happen now.

"Sakura-san. Wait."


End file.
